BACKGROUND: Arterial switch operation (ASO) is a relatively safe operation nowadays. We hypothesize that intraoperative revision for coronary malperfusion still plays an important role during ASO in the current era. METHODS: From January 2005 to May 2016, 244 patients underwent ASO. Medical records were reviewed and the details of intraoperative revision were described. Morbidity and mortality were compared in patients with/without intraoperative revision. Factors related to the need for intraoperative revision were analyzed...

Swimming at low Reynolds number is typically dominated by a large viscous drag, therefore microscale swimmers require non-reciprocal body deformation to generate locomotion. Purcell described a simple mechanical swimmer at the microscale consisting of three rigid components connected together with two hinges. Here we present a simple microswimmer consisting of two rigid paramagnetic particles with different sizes. When placed in an eccentric magnetic field, this simple microswimmer exhibits non-reciprocal body motion and its swimming locomotion can be directed in a controllable manner...

Background/Objective: Evaluating hamstring strength by isokinetic dynamometry is limited by various practical issues such as time and cost. A video-based Nordic hamstring exercise is introduced as an alternative option. The aims of this study are to evaluate 1.) the between-session reliability and 2.) concurrent validity of the testing method compared to a standardized isokinetic dynamometry. Methods: Thirty male elite footballers were recruited for the study. From the Nordic hamstring exercise, the video-analysis-determined Nordic break-point angles where the participant could no longer withstand the force of the fall (eccentric mode) and the number of seconds that the player could hold at 30° forward flexion angle (isometric mode) were measured...

The polyphenolic flavonoid quercetin has been shown to be a powerful antioxidant, in vitro and in murine models. However, its effect on redox status has been poorly examined in humans, particularly in combination with strenuous exercise. We hypothesized that quercetin supplementation would beneficially affect redox homeostasis in healthy individuals undergoing eccentric exercise. To test this hypothesis, the effects of chronic consumption of quercetin on glutathione system (reduced, oxidized, and reduced to oxidized glutathione ratio), oxidative damage [thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARs)], antioxidant enzymatic network (catalase, glutathione peroxidase, superoxide dismutase) and resistance to lysis, were investigated in erythrocytes, a traditional model widely used to study the effects of oxidative stress as well as the protective effects of antioxidants...

The semicircular canal (SC) system of the inner ear detects head angular accelerations and is essential for navigation and spatial awareness in vertebrates. Because the bony labyrinth encloses the membranous labyrinth SCs, it can be used as a proxy for animal behavior. The bony labyrinth of dicynodonts, a clade of herbivorous non-mammalian synapsids, has only been described in a handful of individuals and remains particularly obscure. Here we describe the bony labyrinth anatomy of three Endothiodon cf. bathystoma specimens from Mozambique based on digital reconstructions from propagation phase-contrast synchrotron micro-computed tomography...

This study sought to determine if the differences in serum estradiol we have previously observed to occur during the mid-follicular (MF) and mid-luteal (ML) phases of the female menstrual cycle could be attributed to estrogen-induced receptor activation and subsequent effects on myogenic-related genes which may otherwise impact muscle regeneration in response to eccentric exercise. Twenty-two physically-active females (20.9 ± 1.4 years, 63.5 ± 9.0 kg, 1.65 ± 0.08 m) underwent an eccentric exercise bout of the knee extensors during the MF and ML phases of their 28-day menstrual cycle...

An innovative array of magnetic coils (the discrete Rogowski coil-RC) with the advantages of flexible structure, miniaturization and mass producibility is investigated. First, the mutual inductance between the discrete RC and circular and rectangular conductors are calculated using the magnetic vector potential (MVP) method. The results are found to be consistent with those calculated using the finite element method, but the MVP method is simpler and more practical. Then, the influence of conductor section parameters, inclination, and eccentricity on the accuracy of the discrete RC is calculated to provide a reference...

BACKGROUND: Lower extremity muscle strength tests are commonly used to screen for injury risk in professional soccer. However, there is limited evidence on the ability of such tests in predicting future injuries. PURPOSE: To examine the association between hip and thigh muscle strength and the risk of lower extremity injuries in professional male soccer players. STUDY DESIGN: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. METHODS: Professional male soccer players from 14 teams in Qatar underwent a comprehensive strength assessment at the beginning of the 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 seasons...

BACKGROUND: Bone loss in patients undergoing revision THA poses a considerable challenge for orthopaedic surgeons. Often, to achieve better fixation in remaining bone, larger diameter acetabular components and reaming superiorly may be necessary. However, this is likely to raise the hip center of rotation, which may lead to altered biomechanics, specifically, insufficiency of the abductor muscles, altered gait, and increased risk of dislocation from impingement. More recently, a newer acetabular shell has been designed to more closely replicate the native hip center of rotation in these circumstances while maintaining adequate fixation...

OBJECTIVE: A spinal cord subependymoma is an uncommon, indolent, benign spinal cord tumor. It is radiologically similar to a spinal cord ependymoma, but surgical findings and outcomes differ. Gross total resection of the tumor is not always feasible. The present study was done to determine the clinical, radiological and pathological characteristics of spinal cord subependymomas. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of ten spinal cord subependymoma patients (M : F=4 : 6; median 38 years; range, 21-77) from four institutions...

OBJECTIVE: Mechanically overloaded muscle and its subsequent damage are strong stimuli for eliciting acute hormonal changes, while the muscle adaptation which occurs following exercise-induced muscle damage may involve complex hormonal responses before the completion of muscle regeneration. The purpose of this study was to investigate systemic responses of various hormones, as well as secreted proteins that are exercise-regulated and associated with muscle adaptation, for several days after eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage in humans...

BACKGROUND: Glenoid replacement in cases of severe glenoid retroversion (RV) or eccentric wear is challenging. The aim of this study was to evaluate different treatment methods under standardized conditions to assist surgeons in the decision-making process. METHODS: Three treatment options for severe glenoid RV (15°) were compared: (1) no RV correction; (2) complete RV correction; (3) no RV correction and implantation of a posterior augmented glenoid (PAG). A highly standardized implantation protocol using artificial glenoid bones (five per group) was chosen, and a physiologic shoulder movement was applied in a biomechanical setting...

BACKGROUND: In a progredient rotator cuff tear with tendon retraction, fatty infiltration and atrophy of rotator cuff muscles the humerus cannot be centered and stabilized sufficiently in the glenohumeral joint. This leads to rotator cuff defect arthropathy as an eccentric osteoarthritis with acetabularization and wear of the acromion, as well as of the glenoid. INDICATION: A painful pseudoparalysis of the shoulder indicates the implantation of a reversed total shoulder arthroplasty (rTSA) to reduce pain and restore active motion...

The interhemispheric transfer of information is a fundamental process in the human brain. When a visual stimulus appears eccentrically in one visual-hemifield, it will first activate the contralateral hemisphere but also the ipsilateral one with a slight delay due to the interhemispheric transfer. This interhemispheric transfer of visual information is believed to be faster from the right to the left hemisphere in right-handers. Such an asymmetry is considered as a relevant fact in the context of the lateralization of the human brain...

BACKGROUND: It is well known that bicuspid valve stenosis can be treated with transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) even if specific issues can cause problems: dilatation of ascending aorta, possible aorthopathy, eccentricity of the valve and calcium distribution in leaflets and in commissures. We classified Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) in type 0 (2 cusps and no raphe), and type 1 (2 cusps and one or more raphes). The aim of the present study was to report the results of two types of valve (CoreValve from 2009 to 2016 and Lotus valve from 2014 to 2017) in a consecutive series of BAV patients treated in 2 Italian centers...

The δD temperature proxy in Antarctic ice cores varies in parallel with CO2 through glacial cycles. However, these variables display a puzzling asynchrony. Well-dated records of Southern Ocean temperature will provide crucial information because the Southern Ocean is likely key in regulating CO2 variations. Here, we perform multiple isotopic analyses on an Antarctic ice core and estimate temperature variations at this site and in the oceanic moisture source over the past 720,000 years, which extend the longest records by 300,000 years...

BACKGROUND: The acetabular fossa is thought to be located in the center of the acetabulum, and acetabular reaming in total hip arthroplasty is conventionally performed in the center of the fossa. However, the actual location of the fossa and the influence that hypoplasia or deformity may have on the position of the fossa are unknown. We hypothesized that the fossa is located in the center of the acetabulum, regardless of hypoplasia or deformity. METHODS: Fifty patients with normal hips (normal hip group), 50 patients with dysplasia who underwent rotational acetabular osteotomy (dysplastic hip group), and 46 patients with osteoarthritis who underwent total hip arthroplasty (osteoarthritic hip group) were evaluated by computed tomography (CT) imaging...